A look back at this year’s best albums: 20 through 11
20. Title Fight: Floral Green
As the old saying goes, “punk’s not dead.”
Well, this may not exactly be “punk”, but it definitely is a return to the post-hardcore punk of the early 2000s that made bands like Taking Back Sunday, Brand New and The Early November permanent staples of any high school mixtape.
Title Fight has not only managed to revive a dying genre, they’ve crafted possibly one of the best albums the genre has ever seen in its decade-plus run.
Standout tracks like “Numb, But I Still Feel It”, “Leaf” and “Lefty” will make even the most stable person remember all their teenage angst.
19. Bear in Heaven: I Love You, It’s Cool
The critic in me will tell you that this album is far from perfect, but out of every great album on this list, this is one of the few that made me sit back and think how cool this album sounded.
I Love You, It’s Cool finds Bear in Heaven in a more mature state of mind.
The album sounds more cohesive and a lot cleaner than their debut effort Beast Rest Forth Mouth.
Tracks like “Idle Heart” “Sinful Nature” and “Cool Light” are the standout tracks of this album.
18. Lotus Plaza: Spooky Action at a Distance
Deerhunter guitarist Lockett Pundt steps out of Bradford Cox’s shadow and into his own as a frontman with Lotus Plaza’s second album.
Spooky Action at a Distance will sound vaguely familiar to Deerhunter fans of the track “Desire Lines” off their 2010 release, Halycon Digest, but that’s because it was the first time Pundt was allowed full control of a Deerhunter song, including singing duties.
Pundt continues to explore similar dream-pop landscapes with his second album, while pondering topics like how the world would be without religion or politics.
“Strangers”, “Monoliths” and “Dusty Rhodes” are definite must-listens.
17. Frankie Rose:
Interstellar
Frankie Rose got her big break during the fuzz rock revival of 2009-2010, playing in bands like Crystal Stilts, The Dum Dum Girls and Vivian Girls before setting out on her own venture with Frankie Rose and The Outs.
Now without The Outs, Rose’s debut solo album is equal parts indie rock as much as it is a throwback to the 80s new wave sound while sounding completely original.
“Know Me” and “Night Swim” are the best tracks on this album.
16. Rick Ross: Rich Forever
If Rozay would have been smart, he would have released this as God Forgives, I Don’t.
Rich Forever saw The Boss at the height of his run started by 2010’s Teflon Don.
Not only did every beat on this mixtape knock it out of the park, it’s clear that Ross has stepped up his lyrical game immensely and fully embraced the Mafioso boss mentality.
Where God Forgives, I Don’t fell short, this mixtape kept the momentum going in Ross’ favor with tracks like “Holy Ghost”, “High Definition”, “F*** Em”, “Triple Beam Dreams”, “Off the Boat” “Stay Schemin’” and the title track “Rich Forever”.
Clearly, having this many album quality tracks on a mixtape should have clued him in that most of this should have been saved for the album.
15. Sarah Jaffe: The Body Wins
All the way from Denton, TX, Sarah Jaffe has been making a name for herself for the past few years with her moody and melancholy songs, but The Body Wins, her third full-length release, could very well be the album that ends up being her big break.
Jaffe’s big voice booms over every jazz-like arrangement on this album, reminiscent of a young Fiona Apple working with Jon Brion.
Be sure to check this entire album out and support Texas artists, especially title track “The Body Wins”, lead single “Mannequin Woman”, and the wonderful “The Way Sound Leaves a Room”.
14. Mac Demarco: 2
Mac Demarco burst onto the scene earlier this summer with his Rock and Roll Night Club 12”, and he follows it up with 2, a guitar-driven rock album that quickly recalls the sounds of Pavement and Stephen Malkmus’ solo material.
His form of classic and bluesrock with an indie rock-twist is sure to be a crowd pleaser for young and old listeners alike.
Tracks to look for are “Cooking Up Something Good”, “Freaking Out the Neighborhood”, “My Kind of Woman” and lead single “Ode to Viceroy”, which really brings on the Pavement comparisons.
13. The Men: Open Your Heart
Last year, Sacred Bones Records’ The Men came out yelling and snarling for 30 straight minutes on Leave Home, leading many to believe it was the return of hardcore music to the indie scene.
With Open Your Heart, though, The Men have mellowed their sound down and started singing instead of yelling, focusing more on melody than loud noises.
The end result is a great album that could either be classified as a traditional punk album, or simply indie rock, depending on your view of either genre.
Good examples of the band’s new take are lead single “Open Your Heart”, “Candy”, “Please Don’t Go Away” and “Ex-Dreams”.
If you buy the album on iTunes, it comes with the great bonus track “A Minor”, otherwise you’ll have to find the Sacred Bones Record Store Day Sampler from this past year.
12. Sleigh Bells: Reign of Terror
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Sleigh Bells did nothing but bring more noise on Reign of Terror compared to their debut album Treats.
The bloodstained Keds on the album cover should be warning enough that you’re in for 30-plus minutes of pure, unadulterated rage as Derek Miller shreds harder and faster, and supplies more booming bass than before for Alexis Krauss to lay her whispery, cheer-like vocals over.
Reign of Terror is a definite improvement upon the Sleight Bells formula, and has the band sounding a lot more cohesive than when they debuted.
Tracks like “Born to Lose”, “Leader of the Pack” and “Comeback Kid” are sure to get any party going.
11. Cloud Nothings: Attack on Memory
After a decent garage-rock, self-titled debut, Dylan Baldi’s second release as Cloud Nothings takes a more professional approach with Attack on Memory, mostly due to legendary producer Steve Albini’s production work.
Baldi’s punk sound combined with Albini’s oversight allows the albm to be equal parts chaos and control, making for a completely enjoyable punk album from start to finish.
Album opener “No Future/No Past” sets the tone for the album, while standout tracks like “Wasted Days”, “Fall In”, “Stay Useless”, “Our Plan” and “Cut You” makes for an excellent sophomore-slum-avoiding album that barely misses the top 10.